Australian Retail Sales Stronger by 1.0%, AUDUSD Nears 5-month High - 2.8.2012

Seasonally adjusted retail Sales in Australia rose by 1.0 per cent in June, higher than a revised 0.8 increase in May according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Economists were expecting Retail Sales to increase by 0.6 per cent in June but the reading was unexpectedly higher, possible factor for higher Retail Sales is the monetary easing by RBA in May and June. Additionally, Australian exports in June were A$26.629 million while imports were at A$26.619 million, creating a Trade Surplus of A$9 million in seasonally adjusted terms. The Aussie fell initially against the greenback early on Thursday to find suppot at 1.0435. However the Australian dollar reacted after the release of Retail Sales and Trade data, and began climbing but was limited below 1.0491. The AUDUSD is trading at the moment just 60 points below a 5-month high.